Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1887-04-09
JUpGE BLACKS GREAT SPEECH.

We give up the entire outside OF this
issue 10 tae great speech made by Judge
Jeremiah S. Black before the judiciary
committee of the Pennsylvania senate
in favor of state regulation of railroads.
This country has never produced a man
Of sturdier honesty, an ADLER lawyer,or
a more patriotic citizen, than was Jerry
Black. Judge OF the supreme court OF
Pennsylvania, attorney general ana
secretary of state of the United States,
his fields of observation were as broad
as the country, and he brought to them
the erudition of d scholar and the COM
%prehensive mind of q statesman.
Yet he was accused by the corpora
tons, and those whom they could III
fuence, with selfish motives. So 1t
will be always. The tribunes OF the
people must zeal the obloquy OF those
who conspire against them. But what
matters that?
Only a few months ago and all par
ties were vying with each other i'll the
advocacy of railroad legislation. Poll
teal parties were even reproached for
having among their leaders railroad
lawyers and officers, as if these were
not TO be accorded their common rights
as citizens. To-day, by some subtle
influence, we find many of those who
were the loudest in these denunciations
with the arguments in their mouths of
the railroad lobby. Since when was it
discovered by democrats that we need
ed no legislation to enforce b obser-
vance of the state constitution by the
railroads? In August last their sanhe-
| drim at St. Louis, in express terms, de-
| clared that we did. When did repub-
licans ascertain that no such legislation
was necessarily Their great council of
state solemnIy assured the people that
it was needed, and that they were more
| certain to give it than the democrats.
| The candidates were nominated upon
these platforms. The voters cast their
ballots in accordance with the promises
contained in them. Were all these
things mere p%retense, shams and
frauds? Has American politics come
to such a pass that great parties
are ready to acknowledge, either their
stupidity in making or their venality
in breaking promises3 We do not be-
lieve it. AS little as we agree with the
republican party W do not credit it
with such ignorance or duplicity; and
as for the party of our choice we believe
that it was intelligent enough, last
August, to know what it wanted, and
that it is honest enough now to stand
by the promises it has made.
When such specious and shallow ar
guments are advanced to us why we
should torego our convictions of right.
! II is time for IS to pause and reflect, to
consult the fathers, and to draw from
the wisdom of their counsel not only
refreshing draughts of knowledge o.
our duty as Americans, but the cour-
age to put away from US brides of
whatever character and to do that
duty unseIfishly and like men. II we
do not do it now when will we do iii
Read the words Of warning uttered by
Judge Black. He was no demagogue,
no grinder of any mans axe, no ap.
proven of wrong, not even to a rail
road, but he was a lover of his kind,
an advocate of justice, aud he had the
courage to stand by tine right as he
saw it, despite calumny and misrepre'
sentation. From the grave his words
of admonition fall upon our ears with
startling vividness because of the simi
litude of the circumstances under
which we labor to those under which
he spoke. Have we sufficient virtue
and courage to heed them as We
should?